TW: Some supernatural violence, not super graphic.

Enjoy, and let me know what you think. Comments give me life!


KLAUS

It was the full Moon, and Klaus was thrilled.

It had been over three months since Klaus had freed his werewolf side, and he had enjoyed every second of freedom. The ache in his soul had been soothed. He now spent a good portion of his free time as a wolf, trying to make up for the millennia that he should have been able to run freely beneath the sky.

The Roanoke pack, and their willingness to become Hybrids had been a godsend. The six werewolves had embraced Klaus and his family with open arms. The pack had shared their resources, their homes, and their labor to help the Mikaelsons settle in. All of them had become Hybrids, and Janet, the pack alpha's wife, had even become a vampire in order to support her wife through eternity. They had all taken quickly to their new status. Wanda and Pilar had an iron grip on their control, and Herc and Michelle had reacted with genuine joy to their new abilities.

Spending time with the pack was quickly becoming Klaus's favorite activity. A werewolf was supposed to be with a pack. Klaus had been pack-less for so long, that he hadn't even realized that he had been missing a vital part of himself. Running with the pack in their shaggy forms was as close to heaven as Klaus would ever come.

Running under a full moon was a primal, holy experience. Even though Hybrids could resist the pull of a full moon, it felt better to surrender. So this month Klaus and the pack had decided to go running in the forest. Pack member Herc had drawn the short straw and was responsible for running the perimeter of the city (all the Hybrids took shifts watching over the city, in case any antagonistic supernaturals made an appearance) and was excluded from the fun. While Herc patrolled, Klaus and the others played like puppies. Klaus was the fastest, but Hayden was a close second. Wanda was the stealthiest, and Alicia was the loudest. Together they all romped through the forest.

It was still early in the night when Herc howled.

Klaus froze.

Wanda barked, and nodded her head at Hayden. They would take over running the perimeter, just in case there was another incident. Klaus nodded, then he and the rest of the pack ran towards Herc.

They found the Hybrid in human form, watching the land from a ledge that jutted out from a tall hill. From the ledge they were standing on they could see a good stretch of the twisting road below them, and the scant few cars that were on it.

Klaus shifted and immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

"Vampires, and a few compelled humans in cars. They are chasing that blue minivan, trying to run it off the road."

Klaus examined the road, and could see the minivan in question. It was being pursued by four cars that held a mix of vampires and humans.

"Why?"

Herc shrugged. "I'm not sure. But from the sounds coming from inside the minivan, two adults are shifting into werewolves for the first time."

That wasn't good. A newly turned werewolf was scared and uncontrollable.

"We need backup," Klaus said. "I will go get my brothers, Herc, you and Michelle will watch the car. Pilar, Alicia, I want you two to circle back to the Hearth, just in case this is an attack."

"Understood," Herc nodded.

The pack separated. Klaus shifted back into his furry form and sped back to the grounds of Hearth Hall. Once there he howled, loud and piercing.

In roughly a minute Elijah was standing in front of him.

"Finn took Miriam home; we agreed that he will stay at the Hearth and Kol will join us momentarily," Elijah said without nary a greeting. He smelled like Miriam, and an intense wave of jealousy and desire swept through Klaus. He knew that his eldest brothers had gone on a date with their mate. Hell, he had even helped them plan it. But to smell the result of the no doubt romantic evening with Miriam was almost too much. Klaus vowed to be the next man to take Miriam out.

Klaus nodded his giant head to let Elijah know he had heard him, and the two brothers waited for Kol to arrive. The instant he did, the three of them were off.

They raced through the trees, past a pond and a few isolated cabins, before reaching the overlook that Herc and Michelle were still waiting at.

"What has happened?" Elijah asked. Herc quickly updated Elijah and Kol.

Once he was done, Elijah said, "We need to keep the car from reaching the city; we don't want two werewolves running through the place. We also need to destroy those vampires. Niklaus, you and your Hybrids get rid of the vampires, and Kol and I will stop the car and extract the werewolves."

Klaus nodded, and they all sprung into action.

Klaus had always enjoyed his life as a vampire; the power and strength that he possessed more than made up for the human life that he had lost. As he charged the cars that held the compelled humans and vampires, a thrill went through him at the feeling of working with his Hybrids. This was not their first time defending Roanoke from outsiders. The Mikaelsons and the pack had been challenged a few times over the last three months. With each attack they became stronger.

Michelle slammed her body into one of the cars, flipping it off the road. Herc jumped on the roof of another car. He shoved his hand through the driver-side window and pulled the driver out of his seat by his neck. Now driverless, the car veered off the side of the road and into the ditch. Klaus, in the meantime, had jumped onto the front of the lead car. He shattered the windshield and pulled the driver out. He decapitated the vampire and threw the head at the driver of the last remaining car.

All four of the pursuing cars had been stopped, but the humans and vampires inside of the vehicles were still alive. The humans were slow, possibly stunned, but the vampires reacted with speed. Of the six remaining vampires, two immediately tried to run away. They were older, Klaus could tell, and they knew they had made a mistake by challenging the first ever Hybrid pack. But running wouldn't save them. Herc was on them in an instant, chasing them down and dispatching them with stunning efficiency.

The remaining four vampires attempted to charge Klaus and Michelle, but they were no match for the Hybrids. In no time at all, three of the four vampires were dead. The fourth, realizing that he was the sole survivor, turned to run.

Kol zoomed over and broke the vampire's neck.

"We should keep this one for questioning," Kol said to Klaus. He hefted the body over his shoulder, then vamped away, towards Hearth Hall.

"Niklaus!" Elijah called.

Klaus turned and went over to his brother, noting that in the time that it took for him and his pack members to kill the vampires his brothers had killed the humans and managed to get the minivan to pull over. Two black adults, a man and a woman, had exited the car and were writhing on the ground in pain as every bone in their bodies were breaking. A third human, a pretty Asian woman who had been driving, stumbled out of the car and gaped at the scene before her.

"Oh my god!" she exclaimed, horrified.

From inside the car, Klaus could hear children crying.

Another bone in the man's body broke, and the woman cried out, "Keith!"

"Ma'am, do you have any idea what is happening?" Elijah asked.

The human woman shook her head as tears streamed down her face.

Elijah looked at Klaus. "I will take her and the children back to the Hearth. Will you help these two with their transition?"

Klaus nodded. Of course he would help. These two could be potential Hybrids. And if they stayed and settled in Roanoke, the children in the car would eventually grow up and become werewolves (and Hybrids, if Klaus deemed them worthy) themselves. This was what pack life was supposed to be: adult pack members and children, multiple generations of the pack that lived together and continued to grow and strengthen. While Klaus was not overly fond of children, he did understand that they represented the future. Klaus wanted a future, with his siblings, with Miriam, with the pack he was building. He wanted it all, and he was going to get it or die trying.

Elijah gently man-handled the distraught woman into the passenger seat before getting into the driver's seat. Klaus watched as his elegant brother drove the blue minivan and fought a smirk. He wished he would have had his cell phone with him; that would have been a funny picture.

The snapping of another bone brought Klaus's focus on the two shifting werewolves. He shifted into his human form and knelt down next to them.

"I know it hurts," he said, "but just know that it gets better. Soon your transformation will be finished, and you will run under the moonlight. You will be strong, and fast, and wild, but above all you will be free."

The two finished their transition not long after. Now fully furry, they both wobbled around on new legs. The man had brown fur that was almost orange in color. The woman's fur was a deep auburn, with dark gray patches. For a few minutes the two new wolves tested their limbs and their range of motion. The woman got her feet underneath her first, and then she was off, racing through the trees. Her companion chased after her, much less sure of himself.

Klaus chuckled. He needed to go after them, and make sure that they didn't go into the town, but first, "Herc, Michelle, clean this up. Call Janet if you need to."

The two nodded and got to work.

Satisfied, Klaus sped after the two new werewolves. Excitement bubbled up in his chest. If the two of them impressed him, he would offer them the ability to become Hybrids. And if they accepted, his pack would become eight people strong.

The future was looking up!


MIRIAM

Date night officially ended when Klaus howled. Elijah motioned for one of the staff to come over and gave the woman orders to have the gazebo cleaned up. He then turned to Finn and said, "Return her to the Hearth and stay with her. Tell Kol to join me. I am going to go meet Niklaus; he is just on the other side of those trees."

Finn agreed and led Miriam out of the gazebo, and made to pick her up. But before he could, Elijah sped over and kissed her one last time.

"Be safe," she whispered.

He grinned at her. "I always am."

And then he was gone.

Nerves bubbled up in Miriam, but she pushed them down. Elijah, Kol, and Klaus could handle themselves. Whatever was happening out there would be dealt with swiftly and ruthlessly, that she could be sure of.

"Come, we must return home," Finn murmured.

Miriam knew that, which was why she allowed him to pick her up and run with her. She didn't enjoy the sensation of vamp speed, but she could tolerate it in small doses, like running back to the Hearth. As soon as they returned to the Hearth, Finn called for Kol. As the two brothers talked, Miriam took the opportunity to go to her room and freshen up. She changed out of her date night clothes and into a comfortable pair of black sweatpants and a pink tank top.

Kol was gone when Miriam went back downstairs. The teenagers and Laura were watching a movie in the theater room and the adults (August, Jenna, Wanda's wife Janet, and Michelle's husband Thomas) were playing poker in the dining room. Maddox and Greta, newly engaged as of a month previous, were in the kitchen, pouring over wedding venues and discussing the guest list.

"What do you want to do?" Finn asked.

Miriam hesitated. She wanted to fret over her mates, but that wasn't an option. She knew it wasn't healthy, to obsess over the future and different outcomes. She needed a distraction, or to turn her brain off for a little while.

"I'm going to join the kids in the theater. Do you want to join me?"

"Of course," he said, and he smiled softly at her.

The kids didn't ask any questions when Miriam and Finn entered the room, which Miriam was grateful for. Caroline did pull out her phone and text her: ur telling me about the date later. I can still smell sex on you, but good try cleaning up!

Miriam blushed and ignored the blonde's waggling eyebrows.

The five kids- Caroline, Jeremy, Luka, TJ, and Laura- were the youngest out of the ragtag group, but even the gap between the teenagers and Laura was a lot. To include little Laura, the teenagers decided on a rotation to pick the movie based on age. Luka was the oldest at age eighteen, then Caroline at almost eighteen (but forever frozen at seventeen), Jeremy at almost sixteen, TJ at fifteen, and lastly Laura at eight. It must have been Laura's turn, because Disney's Princess and the Frog was playing. The teenagers all thought they were too cool for a kid's movie, but TJ's foot was tapping in time to the music and Luka did a spell that made fake fireflies swim through the air.

The movie was nearly over when Janet entered the room and motioned for Miriam and Finn to leave the room. The teenagers looked like they wanted to get involved, but they stayed in the room to keep Laura calm.

"What's up?" Miriam asked once the three adults were in the hallway.

"Kol just came back with a prisoner, and said that there was a skirmish on the backroads just outside of town. Maddox and I are going out to help Herc and Michelle clean up. There was also an issue with a family with two new werewolves," Janet said, and then quickly brought Miriam and Finn up to speed on what had just taken place.

"That poor woman," Miriam murmured. She remembered her own rude awakening to the supernatural world, and couldn't imagine what it would feel like to suddenly have the people you were closest to suddenly turning into monsters, with your children in the backseat.

"They should be here any minute now," Janet said. "I just wanted to update you all before I left."

"Alright. Thank you," Miriam said. Janet left just as the kids came out of the movie room.

"The movie's over. Can we know what's going on, now?" Jeremy demanded.

Miriam held up a finger, asking him to wait, before addressing Finn: "Do you want to go help Kol?"

"Yes, and when we are finished we will come find you and Elijah," Finn said. He kissed her cheek and sped away.

Miriam turned to the teens and quickly brought them up to speed, ending with, "So the pack is going to stay out all night with the two new werewolves, so TJ and Laura, you will be staying here tonight. And the woman and her children are coming here now. She's justifiably frightened, and so are the kids. It's probably best that we don't overwhelm them."

"Luka and I will set up a room for them," Caroline offered. "Luka can set up those calming candles, and I can get some extra bedding."

"I can make them toast," Laura said proudly. And without any feedback, she ran off towards the kitchen.

"I will make sure she doesn't make too much toast," TJ chuckled.

"Sounds good," Miriam gave him a thumbs up. "And Jeremy, you'll clean up all the popcorn and trash you guys left in the theater?"

Jeremy sighed. "Fine."

And with that, they all separated to do their self-assigned jobs. Miriam went into the common rooms and found that the other adults had abandoned their poker game. August was gone, presumably to help Finn and Kol secure the prisoner. Jenna, Greta, and Michelle's husband Thomas were the remaining adults.

"What's the plan?" Miriam asked as she came into the room.

"Calm them down, assess for injuries, and then tell that poor woman that her life has changed forever," Greta said with a sympathetic expression on her face.

There wasn't much else to do. Either this family accepted their new supernatural life, or they didn't. If they did, they would find a home in Roanoke. They would have allies and friends, and support through all of the ups and downs that came with life. If they did not accept their new life, they would struggle through life. Werewolves were pack animals, they were meant to do life together. It would be beyond sad if they didn't accept their new reality.

"Who should be the ones to talk with her?"

"I was thinking me and you, at least at the beginning," Greta said. "This woman is a human, and it would probably freak her out to meet vampires right now."

"Sounds good," Miriam gave her a thumbs up.

She and Greta went outside to wait for Elijah to arrive, which he did in less than five minutes. He expertly parked the sky blue minivan, and got out at a human pace. He went around the car to the passenger side and opened the door. A short Asian woman- about Miriam's height- got out of the car. Robotically, she opened the sliding minivan door and helped her kids out of their car seats.

There were three children, an older girl who looked to be about five, and a pair of toddler twins. All three immediately grabbed a hold of their mother and refused to let her go. The woman practically collapsed to the ground and let her children burrow into her. For a long time, nothing happened. The children calmed down after a bit, and once their emotions regulated, the woman looked up.

"Hi," she said hoarsely.

"Hi," Miriam responded gently. She sat down on the gravel next to the woman. "My name is Miriam Sanchez. What's your name?"

"I'm Chloe Huynh-Lambert. These are my kids. This big girl is Coral, and the twins are Cosette and Kaden. We… We've been through a lot these past couple of days," Chloe blinked back tears.

Miriam smiled sympathetically. "I'm sure. Do you want to come inside? We have food, and a place to rest. We don't have any clothes for the kids, but me and you look to be about the same size."

"There's suitcases in the back," Chloe said. "We were on vacation wh-when it happened."

"Okay. Elijah, can you grab their bags? Caroline is setting up a room for them."

Elijah nodded and opened the trunk.

"Chloe, can I help you bring your kids inside?"

"Yeah. Kaden fell asleep, so if you could hold him, that would be great."

After a little bit of juggling, Miriam was holding one of the toddlers and Chloe was holding the other, and had her eldest daughter by the hand. Miriam led the family into the Hearth and into the kitchen. Chloe sat down at the island, still holding her half-asleep child. Greta helped the older girl into the seat next to her mother, and Miriam continued to hold the sleeping little boy.

TJ was the only one in the kitchen. He set a plate stacked high with buttered toast in front of Chloe before asking if she wanted anything else.

"Uh, some juice, if you have it," she said. He set out three different types of juice and a couple of cups.

Chloe and Coral ate slowly, exhaustion in their every moment. Once they were done, Miriam asked if they wanted to go upstairs. Chloe agreed. She, Miriam, and Greta moved the kids to one of the spare bedrooms on the third floor. Caroline and Luka had done a great job of setting up the room; they had put new sheets on the bed, and had set up bedding and sleeping bags on the floor for the kids. The lights were on low in the room, which smelled like lavender. The family's suitcases were lined up against the wall, no doubt Elijah's doing.

Miriam and Greta helped Chloe get her kids in their pajamas and into their temporary beds. Once they were all sleeping Chloe finally took care of herself. She took a quick shower, and changed into her own pajamas. When she finished, the three women went down the hall to the third floor landing. There were plush chairs there, and Chloe sank into one with extreme weariness.

"Do you want to tell us what happened?" Miriam asked tentatively.

"I'm not sure I even understand what happened," Chloe whispered. "We were on vacation, driving my sister-in-law to the medical school here in Roanoke. We're from Oklahoma city. It's like seventeen hours away, but we wanted to spend a few days together before she buried herself in school work. We… We were in Little Rock when a bunch of people attacked while we were at a park. My husband killed someone. He killed her! She was coming at us with a cattle prod, and he shoved her so hard that she fell and cracked her head on a rock. Oh my god, the sound it made! My sister-in-law ran someone over in the car as we were trying to escape… I'm not sure if she killed him or not. And we've been pursued ever since. I think that was a day ago… the time is blurry. When we try to call the police, they arrive, but when they talk to the people hunting us, they just go away! And then the bad people catch up with us again and we have to keep running. I don't understand!" She put her head in her hands and sobbed.

"Hey, it's okay," Miriam said as she pulled Chloe into a hug. "You all survived. You're okay."

"It's not okay!" she cried. "Tonight, while we were trying to run away from those people, Keith's bones started breaking, and then K's… God, the sounds! And then we were being followed again, before these monsters came out of nowhere and killed everyone!"

Miriam hushed her. "Chloe, I have answers for you, but I'm not sure you should hear them right now. Do you want to sleep first? It doesn't sound like you've gotten a lot of sleep."

"I want to know what's happening," Chloe said firmly, pulling away and wiping her face clear of tears. "I don't think I can sleep before I know what's going on."

"Alright," Miriam allowed, "but you need to keep an open mind."

And then Miriam and Greta stripped away all the blissful ignorance that Chloe possessed. They told her about werewolves, and the curse that hovered over their entire species. They told her that her husband and her sister-in-law must have activated their werewolf gene by killing the compelled humans that were hunting the family. Miriam explained the basics about werewolves: the heightened senses and speed, the strength, and the involuntary shifting during the full moon. They told her about the existence of other supernaturals, like vampires and witches. Greta demonstrated her powers for the stunned woman by making objects around the room float and creating a few orbs of light.

Chloe was a good listener, and believed Miriam and Greta, especially after Greta's display of her powers.

"So my husband and sister… they're werewolves now?"

"Yes," Miriam confirmed.

"Okay. And Elijah, the man that drove us here, is a vampire?"

"Yes."

"Huh. I was envisioning a vampire to look more Dracula than Mr. Darcy," Chloe commented, a spark of humor in her tired eyes.

Miriam giggled. "Vampires can look like any type of person. Elijah just has a refined sense of style. There are other vampires here, if you want to meet them. One of them, Caroline, actually set up the room you and your kids will be staying in tonight."

"There are also other witches here," Greta added. "My younger brother and fiance live here, and so does a witch named August."

"We have humans too," Miriam said. "I'm human, and so are a few others."

"I'm glad to hear that," Chloe chuckled. A thought seemed to occur to her, for she sat up a little straighter: "So if the werewolf gene is genetic, that means my kids are also werewolves?"

"Yes, but that gene is only triggered by them killing a human," Greta said. "And I know that sounds morbid, but you have to realize that many werewolves never activate their genes. Most live out their lives as model citizens. They might have heightened emotions, but there is a big step from having a temper and killing a person. Of course, there are some instances that are unavoidable, like with your husband and sister. They killed in self-defense. Even accidents like drunk driving can trigger the curse. You will have to watch them once they hit puberty. But I'm the wrong person to talk to about this. If you want more information, you will want to talk to the pack once they return. Or better yet, talk to Thomas. His wife and sister-in-law are wolves, and his son has the gene for it. You and him are in similar circumstances."

Chloe let out a breath. "This has been a lot."

Miriam patted her hand. "I know. You had a violent introduction into the supernatural world. Go get some sleep. You husband and sister will return tomorrow morning, and you can all talk then."

"Sleep sounds good," Chloe said, and she got up.

A question popped in Miriam's head, and she stopped Chloe before she entered her bedroom. "What were their full names, again?"

"Oh, Keith Lambert. My husband and werewolf, apparently," Chloe said dryly. "And Keelin Lambert, my sister-in-law."

Keelin.

No… what were the odds?

Miriam smiled tightly. "Great, thanks. Have a good night's sleep."

"I'll try, unless the boogeyman is real… he isn't, is he?" Her eyes went wide with concern.

"You're safe," Greta laughed.

Chloe gave a thumbs up, then went into her room and quietly shut the door.

Miriam hurried down the stairs to the ground floor and found her mates in the kitchen, talking with the other adults.

"What's wrong?" Kol asked when he saw her face.

"One of the new werewolves, she's your sister Freya's future wife!"


Everyone at the Hearth got a late start the next day. Unfortunately, the kids all had school, supernatural issues or not. All five of them had been tired, and whined and groaned all the way out the door. Thomas had taken the kids to school before reluctantly going to work himself (he was a high school teacher). The rest of the Hearth's inhabitants came out of their rooms late in the morning, so late that they just bypassed any thought of breakfast foods and instead began to heat up leftovers.

It was noon before Chloe and her kids appeared.

The four of them were in new clothes, and the children looked like they had just gotten out of the bath. In the daytime, where there were no scary monsters, the children looked more cautiously curious than terrified.

"Good afternoon," Miriam greeted. "Are you guys hungry? There's food in the dining room."

"Yes, we are, thank you," Chloe responded. She nudged her children towards the dining room, where Maddox and Greta were eating. The children were wary of all the new adults, but their hunger outweighed their caution, and pretty soon they were feasting on grapes and crackers and cheese with abandon.

August was amazing with the children. He did tricks for them, like disappearing a grape and making it appear behind Coral's ear. He even magically floated several cheese cubes onto the twins' plates. Soon the children were laughing and demanding trick after trick.

Miriam pulled Chloe to the other end of the room, far enough away from little ears but close enough that they could still see their mother. "The accident from last night was covered up. All traces of the cars and the people pursuing you are gone. There is no more immediate danger, especially while you are here in this house. Also, I just got a text from my boyfriend saying that he and the other wolves are going to be here in about ten minutes."

"Great," relief flooded Chloe's face. "And Keith and Keelin are fine?"

"Everyone is fine," Miriam confirmed. "They will be returning to you in one piece, though they probably have all the same questions that you had last night."

"I'll feel better when I see them," Chloe admitted.

"I bet. I know it's been a terrifying couple of days. Hey, um, I've got a question about what you went through," Miriam shifted awkwardly on her feet.

"What is it?" Chloe was more curious than insulted.

"If you were being pursued, why did you keep going towards Roanoke?"

"We didn't really know what to do, after calling the cops on those people twice, and having them still follow us," Chloe said quietly, as if speaking the words aloud would make the vampires come back. "The third time we called the cops and they were co-compelled? Compelled to leave, one of them said to stop making up wolf stories like the residents of Roanoke. Since we were going there anyway, we decided to hedge our bets that there were people here in Roanoke that could help us," Chloe shrugged, a slight smile on her face. "I guess it was true that there were people here that could help us."

Miriam grinned at her and squeezed Chloe's shoulder. "I'm glad you guys made it here in one piece. Now, let's get you something to eat while we wait for Keith and Keeling to arrive."

Chloe smiled in relief. "That sounds great."

Ten minutes later the front door to Hearth Hall burst open and all of the pack members filed in. Greetings and introductions were exchanged, and the Lambert children tearfully reunited with their dad and aunt. Everyone grabbed more food and extra chairs were brought into the dining room. Finally, when everyone was situated, Keith and Keelin began to ask their questions.

Keith was a man in his mid thirties, of average height with a stocky build. His hair was shaved close to his head, and Miriam could see a portion of a tattoo peeking out from underneath his borrowed wife-beater. His questions aligned with his wife's; he was worried about how the werewolf gene would represent itself in his children, and how it would affect their quality of life. Wanda and the other werewolves assured him the children would be fine.

"They might have heightened emotions when they become teenagers, but so do teenage witches and human teenagers," Wanda said. "The gene doesn't make them want to commit murder, it just means they might have a shorter fuse than most people. They will still be your children, no matter what type of blood runs through their veins."

"And not every werewolf gene is triggered by anger or premeditated murder," Pilar said. "I killed my abusive boyfriend in self-defense."

"Mine was a car accident when I was a teenager," Alicia said. "Another car hit me, and when I tried to correct my car, I hit a pedestrian."

"Two robbers attacked my abuela's home, and I pushed one too hard, and he hit his head on the corner of the kitchen counter," Herc added his story to the lot.

"The point is this: they may take a life in the future. But they don't need to go through that awful experience alone," Michelle finished. "You two don't need to go through this alone."

The questions changed tone. Keelin wanted to know who the people were who had tried to kill them. She was angry, and justifiably so. Miriam tried not to stare, but the werewolf was beautiful in her fury. Like with every character Miriam had met, Keelin looked slightly different from her television actress. She was young, around Miriam's age. Her hair was thick and curly, even more so than Miriam's own hair. She had intelligent dark eyes and an athletic build, like she played soccer or was a rock climber.

"We have one of the assailants in our possession," Elijah said, interrupting Miriam's musings.

"That's a nice way of saying 'dungeon'," Jenna said dryly.

Elijah smirked, but otherwise ignored Jenna's quip. "Niklaus, I was waiting for you to return before interrogating him."

"We shall do that later tonight," Klaus promised.

"He can't escape, can he?" Chloe asked with a worried look at her children, who were still being entertained by August's magic tricks, and not listening to the adults talking about the serious topics.

"No," Maddox assured her. "He's only a vampire, they're fairly easy to contain."

"Enjoy yourselves today," Elijah told the Lamberts. "You have nothing to fear while you reside here, I assure you."

And so the day passed slowly for everyone. Many of the pack members went to their various places of employment. Michelle, Wanda, and Janet went out to a late lunch together. The teenagers and Laura returned to the Hearth, and TJ and Laura went home to their parents. All pack members besides Alicia left to do their own thing.

Dinner was a quiet affair.

The residents of the Hearth made their own dinner or heated up left-overs as the mood hit them. The Lamberts all ate together at an early time. By the time that Miriam, Jenna, and Jeremy had finished eating, the Lamberts had been outside in the backyard for a while. The children were running around in the grass, playing with the few child-appropriate toys that Michelle and Pilar had been able to scrape up. August, the child-favorite, was blowing bubbles for the kids. Alicia, Chloe, Keelin, and Keith sat on lawn chairs, drinking from soda cans.

Miriam and Jenna joined them. Miriam found herself sitting in-between Alicia and Chloe.

"I like listening to them laugh," Chloe admitted. "The past couple of days they haven't so much as giggled."

"We survived," Keith said gently, and grasped his wife's hand in his.

"But how can we keep them alive?" Chloe asked, a hint of despair in her voice. "We got lucky this time. Who's to say that next time some fanatic vampire comes after us that we can save them again?"

"I could move back in with you," Keelin offered.

"No, you can't do that!" Keith protested. "You're going to school here in Roanoke, that's final."

"I can defer for a year," Keelin bargained.

"No. This is your first year of medical school, Kee. You want to be a doctor, and no evil vampire will take that from you," Keith insisted.

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Keelin demanded. "Are we supposed to just fight off every evil vampire that comes at us? And do you really expect me to just let you and Chloe do all the fighting by yourselves, when I know damn well that I can help?"

"I… I don't know what to do, Kee," Keith slumped in his seat, defeated. "It's not like we have a community to fall back on in the City."

"There are werewolf packs near your home, but the people in those packs are the type of people who stay off the grid on purpose," Alicia explained. "Packs usually keep to the wilderness, and rarely interact with others, human or otherwise. Their reluctance to be involved with society has saved them from vampires, but also isolates them from a broader community. I can introduce you to a few packs, if you want to join them in the forest."

"I'm not raising our kids in the woods, Keith," Chloe insisted sharply. "I'm not homeschooling them, and I also am not living in a place without plumbing."

"But we need a community, babe," Keith countered.

"Would you consider moving here, to Roanoke?" Miriam interjected before they could continue arguing. She wanted them close. If this universe worked anything like the TV show she watched, then Freya and Keelin would get together. That made Keelin family.

Keith hesitated. "I'm not sure I could get a job here."

Jenna chuckled. "One of the main benefits of having vampires around is their ability to compel people to do their bidding. Just tell one of the Mikaelsons where you want to work and you'll get a job there."

Keith frowned. "That doesn't sound fair. I shouldn't be hired for a job that someone else has or is better qualified for."

"Fair is for other people," Keelin argued with her brother. "Our family's safety is more important than someone's job. CoCo and the twins are more important than someone else's career path. Please, Keith, let the Mikaelsons help. We would have their direct protection if we lived in Roanoke."

"The kids could grow up around others of their kind," Chloe added tentatively. "We both know the importance of community, and I would hate to purposely cut them off from people who are like them. They deserve to understand all parts of their identity, including this new furry one."

Keith signed.

"I know I'm just a human in a sea of supernaturals," Jenna interjected, "and I can only speak for my experience. But it has been a godsend, living here in Roanoke for the past three months. My nephew and I have been around people who understand what we've gone through, and that alone is priceless."

"We can't promise absolute safety, no one can," Miriam told the Lamberts. "But we will protect you all fiercely, and support you in any way we can."

"You don't have to make a choice now," Alicia's voice was soft. "I know you all have been through a lot. But think it over."

The Lamberts agreed, and all talk of the future was paused. The adults all watched the kids run around the lawn. As dusk settled, fireflies flickered on the edge of the property, near the trees. The scene- children laughing and fireflies floating in the air- was so picturesque that it was crazy for Miriam to think that only twelve hours ago the children were crying and Keith and Keelin were writhing in pain.

Change was happening, some good and some bad. Miriam wasn't sure where her story was heading, but as she watched August slip on a patch of wet grass (to the glee of everyone watching), she believed that the future wouldn't be all bad.


"We want to move here, to Roanoke," Chloe said firmly.

It was breakfast, the next day. The teenagers had just left with Jenna, leaving the Hearth at slightly less than capacity. The entire Lambert family was at the dining room table, along with Greta, Maddox, August, and the Mikaelsons. The table was absolutely loaded with a multitude of breakfast food, and the kids were enthusiastically eating everything they could get their grubby little hands on.

Klaus and Kol were noticeably awkward around the three little kids, and Miriam found their awkwardness hilarious. Elijah and Finn had children, once upon a time, and were less stiff. Miriam had spent her teenage years babysitting, and easily slid back into the happy persona that children enjoyed.

"Great!" Miriam responded to Chloe, smiling brightly.

"What would you like us to do?" Elijah asked. "We will do everything within our power to make your move go smoothly."

Keith and Chloe exchange looks.

"We need our house in Oklahoma City packed up, Keith needs a job here in Roanoke, and we need to find a place to live," Chloe listed.

"There is a supernatural moving company that can have your entire house packed up in a day or two," Elijah said as he pulled out his cell phone. "I will give you their number, and you can set up a time for them to go to your house."

"That would be great," Keith said, obviously relieved. "Chloe and I were talking, and if you are okay with it, Chloe and the kids will stay here while I go back to Oklahoma City. I need to quit my job and organize the move."

"You are welcome to stay here," Miriam said graciously. "Chloe, while Keith is gone we can look for a house for your family. Three, four bedrooms, maybe even a nice big yard for the kids to play in. Keelin, do you need a place to live?"

"Nah, I've got an apartment lined up with other students," Keelin said, a hint of a smile on her face as her sister-in-law processed what Miriam had said.

"Oh, we don't need a house," Chloe said nervously. "Maybe a condo."

Miriam waved away her words. "Nonsense! We will find a house that you like in a neighborhood that you want to be in, and we will go from there."

Chloe and Keith looked uncomfortable, but they stayed silent. Miriam knew all too well how difficult it was to accept money and help from people, especially strangers. But the couple had their family to think about, so they swallowed their pride and accepted the help that the Mikaelsons were offering.

"Why are you helping us?" Keelin asked. Her words weren't mean, or accusing, just genuinely confused.

"We have all had weird and scary encounters with the supernatural," Miriam said hesitantly, afraid to say the wrong thing and scare the Lamberts off, but also afraid to not say anything. "I want to help you guys find a place that you can call home, a place that you can feel secure in. I also want to help Klaus grow his pack, because the stronger we are the less likely we are to be hurt by any attack."

Keelin looked at her intently, as if she was trying to read Miriam's mind. "I'll accept that answer, for now."

The group made plans. Keith would return to Oklahoma City, put in his two weeks, and organize the move to Roanoke. Chloe and the kids would stay in the Hearth, and Chloe and Miriam would look for a house in Roanoke for the Lamberts to move into. Elijah would make several phone calls and visits to various people to smooth the move for the Lamberts: he would compel a bank in Roanoke to offer Keith a manager position, he would also compel their current apartment landlord to break their lease (free of charge), amongst other things. Keelin was starting medical school the next Monday, but promised her sister-in-law that she would help out however she could.

The Mikaelsons had stayed relatively quiet during the entire talk. Finn, quiet by nature, seemed even quieter in the presence of the rambunctious Lambert children. Kol was unconcerned with the goings-on of pack politics, and he could care less about the future wife of a sister he had never met. Elijah was willing to help the Lamberts at Miriam's behest, and because he valued family above all else. Keelin would be family one day, so she and her family had now been put under Elijah's protection. Klaus, on the other hand, was more concerned with Keith and Keelin's werewolf heritage than their connection to Freya. He eyed them both with barely restrained desire, for Miriam knew he wanted them to become Hybrids. Klaus wanted power, and Keelin could be a key to that power. Miriam had told Klaus a little bit of the rocky relationship between him and Freya, because she didn't want history to repeat itself. Klaus was taking another route. If Keelin and Freya got together, and Keelin was already loyal to Klaus, then Freya would have another tie keeping her with her brothers.

Miriam didn't know what Klaus was planning. He was more honest overall after the Big Talk the Mikaelson siblings had, that much was true. However, he still held his secrets close to his chest. His plans had plans, and Miriam doubted he would ever share all of them with her. That was fine, but she hoped that he wouldn't make too many moves without telling her. She wasn't a strategist, but she could be a sounding board or a voice of reason.

Miriam was still trying to define her place in her mate's lives. She wasn't a lot of things she knew they needed, and while she had been working on her self-image with her therapist, there were still slivers of doubt and insecurities. But she hadn't been lying on her date with Elijah and Finn: she was trying to improve her image of herself. Still, it was easier to feel worthy when she was doing something to help the family.

So after breakfast she got her laptop and went to work trying to find a house that would work for the Lamberts. She was determined to make them feel at home in Roanoke, because if she and Klaus had their way, the Lamberts would be staying for a long time.


ELIJAH

It was the middle of the night when Elijah and his brothers made their way into the basement.

The underground area was large enough to house an entire section devoted to Elijah's vast wine collection, as well as a fully stocked safe room, and three large holding cells. Each cell was magically charmed to nullify the power of witches, the bars were infused with vervain to keep vampires in, and chains strong enough to hold a werewolf were attached to the walls. The cells hadn't been used since the Mikaelsons arrived in Roanoke, but now one was occupied.

The vampire from the night before was huddled in the corner furthest from the cell door. He was a tall, slight man who would have towered over each and every Mikaelson if not for the fact that he was sitting on the floor, holding his knees to his chest. He was physically young, maybe in his early twenties, but he had been alive for at least 150 years. Though obviously just a pawn, he wore an ornate daylight ring that signified that he had at least some rank.

"Hello," Elijah said genially as he and his three brothers approached the cell. "My name is Elijah Mikaelson. I assume you've heard of me. What is your name?"

"B-Bill. Bill Robles," the vampire managed to say.

Klaus smiled, all teeth and no warmth. "Bill! What a lovely, underappreciated name."

Kol nodded in agreement. "Original. Never heard that one before."

"Well, Bill, we've got a few questions for you," Klaus said as he knelt down next to the cell and made eye-contact with Bill. "You are going to answer honestly. Now, be a big boy and stand up and come here."

Bill climbed to his feet and reluctantly made his way to the edge of the cell, still maintaining eye-contact with Klaus.

"Why were you attacking that family?" Klaus asked. "Tell me what the plan was."

"I was told to," Bill responded robotically. "The team and I needed to kill all but one of the werewolves and bring it back to our boss."

It.

Such a dehumanizing word, Elijah mused. While he had never had any strong morals to protect those outside of his family, he had treated those of every supernatural origin with basic dignity. He had spent the last day being in the same space as the Lambert family, and even before learning that Keelin Lambert was a potential sister-in-law, Elijah had treated them respectfully. The Lamberts were struggling with their new reality, and he understood the journey they had been forced to go on. The only difference was that when Elijah and his siblings were transformed into vampires, they had no one to help them. The Lamberts had an entire community of people willing to save them from people like Bill, who dehumanized them by referring to them as 'it'.

"And who is your boss?" Klaus asked.

While Miriam knew a lot of what would happen, Klaus still wanted to double-check all the information their family encountered. Elijah's brother was paranoid to the extreme. He double-checked every source he had concerning the members of his pack. While Klaus could be rash, he wasn't unintelligent when it came to dealing with his enemies. Miriam assumed that Keelin's family was killed off by Lucien's minions, but Klaus and the others wanted to be thorough. They needed to have a clear target to aim at before firing.

"Lucien Castle."

That settled it.

Lucien Castle was now at the top of the Mikaelsons' list of enemies they had to deal with.

Klaus questioned Bill for a few more minutes, but the vampire was just a lackey, and didn't know anything of importance.

"Bill, unfortunately you have come to the end of your usefulness," Klaus said with mock despair.

An idea came to Elijah. "Wait a moment, brother."

Klaus shot him an annoyed look. "We are not letting him go."

"That would be inadvisable," Finn put in gently.

"I am not suggesting we let him go free," Elijah said, barely restraining an eye roll. "I am suggesting we use Bill here as an intimidation tactic."

Kol's eyes lit up with malicious glee. "How so?"

"We send a compelled Bill back to Lucien as a warning to stay out of Roanoke. Maybe a warning will push Lucien to make a move or to back off and reassess."

"I like that idea," Klaus admitted, "but only if Bill here meets the sun after he has delivered his message."

They all agreed, and Bill was compelled to deliver his message to Lucien Castle, then to take off his daylight ring and step into the sun.

The four of them took Bill to the city's edge and let him go. As they watched him speed away, Elijah noticed Finn squirm.

"What is wrong?" he asked his oldest brother.

"Miriam told us that Lucien, Tristan, and Aurora nearly destroyed our family. I understand that we are a few years early, but how can we be sure that we will win?" Finn asked.

"We can't," Elijah said. "All we can do is rely on each other and our allies."

"And the power of love and friendship," Klaus quipped.

Kol rolled his eyes. "The day the Mikaelson family relies on the power of love and friendship to save themselves is the day the world ends."

"Unfortunately, I don't believe that we can win against our enemies unless we build our own ranks of allies," Elijah said. "Relying just on ourselves, or even just our family unit, will not benefit us in the long-run. We need strong, loyal allies to help us fight against our enemies."

Elijah believed his words. Relying on just family would be detrimental to Mikaelson dominance. They needed powerful witches on their side, influential vampires loyal to them, and werewolf and hybrid packs to support them. Miriam's knowledge of the future would only go so far, especially if they didn't take the proper action in order to stay on top. The Mikaelsons also needed to stay together, or at least stay in each other's good graces. Freya would be a key player, Elijah knew. If Klaus angered her too much, she might decide to leave them. That was not an outcome that anyone desired. They needed Freya, just as much as they needed the Martins and any other ally that they could scrounge up.

"So… love and friendship, essentially," Klaus huffed.

Kol snickered. "The end is near."

Elijah just sighed and sped back to the Hearth. He had had enough of his brothers for one night. If he was lucky, he could get to Miriam's room before any of his brothers could.


So we know very little about Freya's wife Keelin. We know that she completed her residency in 2019, that she likes girls, that vampires killed her entire family... and that's basically it. So I'm expanding upon those slim facts. In the Originals, Hayley says that Keelin's grandmother's maiden name was Malraux, so that implies that the grandmother married and took her spouse's last name, and that implies that Keelin's last name is different than Malraux. So I've created a deeper background story for her, because it's a shame that her character wasn't fleshed out.

QUESTION: What type of cars do you picture the Mikaelsons driving?